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🌱 How does New Bern keep its downtown feeling centuries old?

Spotted on the New Bern calendar: DoubleTree by Hilton Brings You Alisa Mike for the Holidays

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Hello New Bern! Stay connected with the latest updates from around town. Let's dive in! ☀️

In today's newsletter:

  • How does New Bern keep its downtown feeling centuries old?
  • How New Bern is honoring its beloved ‘Music Man’
  • How did New Bern fare in the new flag football scene?

📸 Have a great pic of holiday decorations from around New Bern? Post it to New Bern photos of the day! ☃️ 🟢-🟠-🟣-🔴-🟡-🔵 ☃️

Find out what's happening in New Bernfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Today's riddle: Can February March? 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

Find out what's happening in New Bernfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

  • Tuesday: Not as cold with sunshine, with a high of 49 and low of 29 degrees.
  • Wednesday: Sunny to partly cloudy, temps: high: 60, low: 39.
  • Thursday: Times of sun and clouds, with a high of 69 and low of 60 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Why This North Carolina Town Still Feels Like A Step Back In Time (takingthekids.com) — New Bern’s historic core, from Tryon Palace to Union Point Park, is highlighted as a rare place where colonial streets, preserved homes, and riverfront views still shape daily life. The piece walks you through local landmarks, festivals, restaurants, and museums that keep the town’s architecture, food, and community traditions closely tied to its 18th- and 19th-century roots.
   

2. New Bern mourns The Music Man (publicradioeast.org) — New Bern is mourning Howard “Music Man” Matthews, the beloved street guitarist often seen playing outside Baker’s Kitchen on Middle Street. After the community rallied around him following an assault in March, residents and Mayor Jeffrey Odham are now honoring his memory, and his family has launched a GoFundMe to help cover funeral and burial costs.
   

3. Pamlico County caps off unbeaten debut with winter flag football title (highschoolot.com) — New Bern’s girls’ flag football team was part of a 14-team Eastern North Carolina winter tournament where Pamlico County capped an unbeaten debut season with a championship at ECU. New Bern fell to Pamlico during the season, but the growing sport now includes over 130 North Carolina schools and multiple seasonal championships statewide.
   

4. NC Chemical Company Pleads Guilty to Polluting River (wnct.com) — From a federal courtroom in New Bern, prosecutors detailed how American Distillation, Inc. and its owner admitted to illegally dumping chemicals into the Cape Fear River and failing to pay federal taxes. The case outlines years of improper handling of tert-butyl alcohol and wastewater, and highlights federal officials’ warnings about risks to downstream communities that depend on those waters.
   

5. Judge blocks Trump administration's attempt to end a disaster-preparedness grant program (publicradioeast.org) — New Bern’s Duffyfield Canal flood-risk assessment, worth $300,000, is back on track after a federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end FEMA’s BRIC disaster-preparedness grants. The ruling also protects millions for nearby towns like Pollocksville, Maysville, and Greenville, allowing long-planned resilience and drainage projects to move forward across Eastern North Carolina.
   

📸 Around New Bern

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🗓 Upcoming Events in New Bern

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Other local events
    Thursday December 18
  • Christmas Business After Hours & Open House
    New Bern Area Chamber of Commerce
    5:00 pm

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🗓 Events Nearby

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • I am seriously looking for someone who can come to my home and potentially
    occupy my husband with dementia for a few hours a couple of times a week. He is non-combative. I just need to get out once in a while to do chores… (Nextdoor River Bend)
  • Please share & repost to help reunite this lost cat!
    Chess was LOST on December 13, 2025 in New Bern, NC 28562 near Near tobiano dr Sharing for a neighbor. For the latest information or to contact the… (Nextdoor Derby Park II)
  • A bipartisan three-judge trial court panel has upheld the constitutionality of NC’s certificate-of-need law in health care, rejecting a New Bern eye... (X: CarolinaJournal)
  • NEW BERN NC Dec 14 Climate: High: 60 Low: 39 Precip:" Snow: Missing... (X: iembot_mhx)
  • Harris Teeter posted a job opening for Part Time 3rd Shift Grocery Stock Clerk in New Bern. Apply here.
  • BSH Home Appliances posted a job opening for Clamp Truck Operator I, CDC 2nd Shift in New Bern. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near New Bern here.

Ok New Bern! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I don't know, but April May!
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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